*New* Circling Area Dimensions
04-24-2013, 05:57 AM
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*New* Circling Area Dimensions
FAA Expands Size of Protected Airspace for Circling Approaches | NBAA - National Business Aviation Association
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has increased the size of protected airspace used in establishing the minimum descent altitude (MDA) on circle-to-land approaches. On May 2, 2013, FAA will begin publishing instrument approach procedures that use the larger circling approach airspace dimensions. This new criteria affords pilots greater lateral obstacle clearance protection and increased maneuvering space to properly align and stabilize the final approach and landing out of a circling approach.
04-24-2013, 06:13 AM
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so does this mean that the MDA's and visibility requirements will also rise with the greater circling area? Seems like those values would have to, at least in the case of certain airports, based on the new criteria.
04-24-2013, 06:20 AM
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Originally Posted by web500sjc
so does this mean that the MDA's and visibility requirements will also rise with the greater circling area? Seems like those values would have to, at least in the case of certain airports, based on the new criteria.
It will take the FAA a number of years to update existing instrument approaches to the new criteria and apply the larger circling area dimensions. Circling minima not identified by the "Inverse C" icon continue to use the older circling area dimensions defined by the smaller radii.
04-24-2013, 07:33 AM
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Originally Posted by web500sjc
so does this mean that the MDA's and visibility requirements will also rise with the greater circling area? Seems like those values would have to, at least in the case of certain airports, based on the new criteria.
04-24-2013, 08:06 AM
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Originally Posted by Cubdriver
Any guess what the new circling radii will be?
Varies depending on MDA MSL for one.
Definitely not a one-size fits all approach any longer.
04-24-2013, 11:32 AM
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Why does the FAA make things so complicated? PANS-OPS has the better way of designing these procedures. FAA procedures don't do, or don't do a very good job of dealing with the effects of altitude on turn radius and the effects of wind. PANS-OPS gives you a buffer, so if you find yourself 0.1NM outside the radii, you don't hit anything. With TERPs, all bets are off.
04-24-2013, 02:53 PM
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Originally Posted by KC10 FATboy
Why does the FAA make things so complicated? PANS-OPS has the better way of designing these procedures. FAA procedures don't do, or don't do a very good job of dealing with the effects of altitude on turn radius and the effects of wind. PANS-OPS gives you a buffer, so if you find yourself 0.1NM outside the radii, you don't hit anything. With TERPs, all bets are off.
Those are some of the issues that the new criteria takes into account which were not included in the old criteria. The article stills says that the radii are smaller than PAN-OPS though.
As result, FAA conducted an extensive review that resulted in new TERPS criteria that increases the radii dimensions defining the circling protected airspace. In addition, the radii dimensions increase in size as circling MDA increases (Fig 3). This increase in radii size with higher MDAs accounts for greater true airspeeds and adverse wind gradients encountered at higher mean sea level (MSL) altitudes. While these radii are smaller than those used in ICAOs PANS-OPS, they represent a significant improvement over the previous TERPS criteria.
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